Mobile advertising in Australia jumps 81%

Mobile advertising in Australia has been growing steadily and is now fast approaching the 50% mark of the general display ad segment, while mobile video accounted for over 25% of general display ads. That’s according to a new report from PwC and IAB Australia which finds that mobile ads generated $507.8m in ad spend during Q1 2016.

Usually, the first quarter of a new year can be a bit quieter due to a well-known drop following a strong Christmas season in Q4. However, the study found that digital ads were still going strong for March, growing 46.7% due to mobile and video growth.

“After a busy Christmas retail season, the first quarter of the calendar year is usually quieter in ad spend. Digital, however, still grew overall. This goes to show the central role and increasing regard in which digital is held by many marketers and agencies.”

Of the $507.8m in mobile ad expenditure, 57% are being attributed to mobile display and 43% to mobile search. Total expenditure includes general display, search and mobile video ads and have been based on participant data, industry estimates for Google mobile display and search revenue, as well as Twitter and Facebook mobile display revenues.

Fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) are continuing to dominate video ads, with automobile and retail in second and third spot. FMCG takes a staggering 25.5% share of spend in video display ads.

Australia however was beaten by New Zealand which came in at 122% of international growth in mobile advertising the year over. However, growth rates for video and mobile were significantly higher in Australia than those in the UK or the US. Specifically, Australia beat the US (66%) and UK (60%) with an 81% growth rate in mobile.